Kraft removes Taco Bell shells from stores

Published: Saturday, September 23, 2000

WASHINGTON (AP) Kraft Foods recalled on Friday all taco shells that it sells in supermarkets under the Taco Bell brand after tests confirmed they were made with genetically engineered corn that isn't approved for human consumption.

The corn, one of the least grown of several biotech varieties, is approved for use only in animal feed because of questions about whether it could cause allergic reactions in people.

Tests commissioned by an anti-biotech environmental group found traces of the corn in taco shells that had been purchased in a Washington suburb, and tests performed for Kraft at an independent lab found similar results, the company said.

Kraft, a division of Philip Morris Inc., said it would discontinue production of the shells until it can be sure there is no more of the genetically engineered corn in the meal it buys. The company said there appeared to be no threat to human health from the corn.

''As soon as we learned that there might be an issue in the supply chain we purchased from, we have been guided by one priority, the safety of our products and their compliance with all regulatory requirements,'' said Betsy Holden, Kraft's chief executive.

The corn, which contains a bacterium gene that makes it toxic to an insect pest, is produced by Aventis Corp. and goes under the trade name StarLink.

Kraft said in a statement that the government should not allow farmers to grow a biotech crop that isn't approved for human consumption. The taco shells were made in Mexico, with meal processed by Dallas-based Azteca Milling at a plant in Plainview.

''All of us government, industry and the scientific community need to work on ways to prevent this kind of situation from ever happening again,'' said Holden.

The taco shells were among 23 corn products that representatives of the Friends of the Earth submitted to Iowa-based Genetic ID Inc. for testing for the Cry9C protein.

The Kraft recall was a setback to the biotechnology industry, which has been battling critics who claim the crops are a threat to human health and the environment. In Britain, the crops have been denounced as ''Frankenfood,'' but criticism in the United States has been muted.

Government regulators insist the crops are safe, and the EPA released a study earlier this week saying none of the insect-resistant crops have been developed so far pose any significant risks.

The Food and Drug Administration called the recall a ''prudent step'' and said it was continuing an investigation to determine how the corn got into the taco shells.

Consumers should return the taco shells to the store where they were bought for full refunds, Kraft said.